You can argue about the devil, but certainly the substance, distinctiveness, and success of your essays depends on the details. Bringing Out Your Uniqueness in the Details Many applicants tend to bury their uniqueness and success under vague assertions. You don’t want to hide your achievements; you want to trumpet them loudly and clearly. For instance, if you…

The most important lesson you can learn as you study for the ACT is this: you can always improve your ACT score. You don’t need to be genius to raise your score, nor do you need infinite amounts of study time. Today, we’ll look at 9 easy ways to improve your ACT score. 1. Prioritize the Most…

I watched a candle burn a few nights ago. It happened to have a particularly nice flame that conjured up many different images: • The flame stood erect. • The flame danced. • The flame cavorted. • The flame pranced. • The flame swayed. • The flame flickered. • The flame fluttered • The flame…

Whether you are finishing up middle school or in your senior year of high school, here are some things to consider as you plan your college visits: When is the best time of year for high-school students to visit colleges? In general, the best time to visit is while college classes are in session (avoid…

Today is Thanksgiving in the United States, a national holiday during which we give pause – at least for a brief moment – to count our blessings. Wherever you are, that is a good exercise. An attitude of gratitude is worth cultivating throughout the year. I firmly believe it provides benefits from an interpersonal, professional,…

I covered the importance of showing fit in Episode 162 “Focus on Fit,” the second most popular show of 2016 and the most popular show of the second half of 2016. But there is a second focus you need if you want to apply successfully to highly competitive programs. You need a corollary to fit….

Most of you are now — or will soon be — editing your critical application essays and personal statements. When Accepted consultants review and edit your essays, they go through a process I call the editing funnel. When you edit your own essays, you should follow a similar process. Here’s how it works… 1. Start…

Not surprisingly, Yale University is consistently ranked among the top universities in the world. It accepts the Common Application and the Coalition Application. Both applications require a personal statement essay plus additional Yale-specific short answers and a Yale writing supplement. For applicants interested in engineering or computer science, there is a third optional essay. This…

Time is running out for you to save up to $500 on non-rush Accepted orders! Between now and Tuesday, Nov. 22nd, you can save BIG when you purchase Accepted services. And yes, this applies to ALL of our applicants – whether you’re applying to business school, med school, law school, grad school, or college. Use coupon code SAVEBIG at…

Want to apply with the confidence? Now is the perfect time to team up with an admissions expert who will help you get accepted! For one week only (November 16-22), when you purchase MBA, med school, law school, grad school, or college services at Accepted, you’ll get significant savings…up to $500 off! By using promo code…

Over the last ten years we have seen a lot more options in graduate management education. I’ve highlighted some on previous shows like the recent shows we have had on the CEMS Masters in International Management or UVA’s MS in Global Commerce or MIT’s MS in Business Analytics. Today it’s my pleasure to have back on Admissions…

Strategy will necessarily guide your selection of essay topics, anecdotes/examples, and structure. Yet an essay built on calculation alone, even if the strategy is spot on, will often disappoint. Logically it all makes sense. But it doesn’t take flight. Poetry can be the secret ingredient to make your application essay sing – right into the heart of its readers….

You’ve done it – you studied, worked, or volunteered abroad and now you want to include part of this in your personal statement. Maybe you want to show that you’ve experienced a different culture or that you’ve managed to go outside of your comfort zone. Maybe you’ve had interesting experiences – met people, climbed mountains,…

If you’re a high school junior or senior (or even a freshman or sophomore in some cases), you might be feeling overwhelmed by the possibilities and details of applying to college, or discouraged by the sheer number of students that high school guidance counselors are asked to assist. Perhaps you are applying to colleges in…

This post about the University of Michigan supplement to the Common Application is part of a series of posts written to help you complete the Common Application supplement for Ivy League and other top schools. What are they looking for? Essay #1 (Required for all applicants. Approximately 250 words.) Everyone belongs to many different communities and/or groups defined by…

It’s November, and we are starting down the home stretch of the college application season. That’s right, final deadlines are looming. The UC system’s undergraduate (non-transfer) applications are due November 30. Many Common Application schools have a January 1 deadline. Although your first instinct might be to panic, it’s important to keep a level head. You are not the only one…

Dartmouth College, like the other Ivy League schools, accepts the Common Application essay. It also requires supplemental essay responses. The additional essays help the admission committee round out the overall picture of you as a prospective student by providing insight into your personality. Don’t approach this as just another essay you have to write. Look…

When working with clients who are applying to graduate programs, I often observe that they focus 100% of their energy on perfecting their resume and essays. Written documents are critical components of a successful application, as are standardized test scores and college grades. What can differentiate an applicant is evidence that the candidate reached out…

The most popular post of the last six months is “Focus on Fit,” and since Linda is taking a brief vacation, we are reposting it for this week. In this show, she shares the four not-so-easy steps to make sure you show you belong at your target programs. Whether you heard it the first time or…

At the AIGAC conference in June, I spoke to a couple of people on the HBS admissions staff and asked them how applicants with less than stellar records can show they are “new and improved” – focused, mature, and ready for business school. They responded that while HBX CORe doesn’t guarantee admission, completing it with…